Fabric for technical purposes



Patented Apr. 8, i930 EDUARD V. ASTEN, OF EUIEZEN, BELGIUM,

PATENT OFFICE AND HAROLD NEWLIN HILL, OF PHILA- DELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNORS TO VON ASTEN & CIE, SOGIETE EN COM- MAN DITE, 0F EUPEN, BELGIUM, A CORPORATION OF BELGIUM FABRIC FOR TECHNICAL PURPOSES I No Drawing. Application filed June 16,

This invention relates to improvements in fabrics for technical purposes and, more particularly, to such fabrics as are used for belting, laundry aprons, etc., on drying machines or apparatus.

Fabrics for these purposes as heretofore constructed are open to a common objection in that they deteriorate rapidly because of the subjection of the fabric to heat and moisture. uch fabrics must also be made of a very dense weave in order that they may have the requisite strength to withstand the stretching which results when the fabric is used'to convey material over drying cylinders While pressing the material in contact therewith. But when the Weave is dense there is lacking the necessary degree of porosity to permit the escape of moisture and its evaporation.

The principal object of this invention is, therefore, to provide a fabric for technical purposes which shall have the highly desirable qualities of great resistance to the deleterious effects of heat and moisture and of great strength and flexibility, while at the same time the weave may be loose enough to provide the-necessary degree of porosity.

We have discovered, and our invention is predicated upon the discovery, that agave fibres possess all the desirable qualities above referred to. By agave we mean all fibres.

of that genus some of which are more familiarly known in commerce as sisal, henequen and Ta-mpico, and we also mean to include ,aloe or Mauritius hemp.

Agave fibre is a very stifi, almost wire-like, fibre possessing extraodinary strength and is highly resistive to heat and moisture, being almost nonabsorptive. However, because of these characteristics, agave does not lend itself readily to weaving and there are, therefore, problems to be overcome before the fibre can successfully be. used in the construction of the types of fabrics with which this invention is concerned.

It is, therefore, a further object of our invention to overcome the difficulties incident to the use of agave fibres in weaving fabrics by providing a treatment for the fibres where- 1928. Serial No. 286,062.

by they will lend themselves more readily to weaving.

Another object of the invention is to provide a fabric for technical purposes having a base of agave and a covering of either vegetable or mineral fibres whereby the fabric may be given a smooth surface and finished appearance. 7

These and other objects and advantages of the invention may be attained in various ways hereinafter more fully described.

According to our invention, the agave fibres are used only to form the base or skeleton. of the fabric. One way of practically employing aga-ve for this purpose is to Weave agave threads with threads of cotton or other suitable material in such a manner that the agave threads do not lie on the upper side of the fabric, this side being exclusively formed of the cotton or other threads.

The same result may also be attained by spinning cotton around the agave fibres so that each thread or element has an outer surface or envelop of cotton and an inner strong core of agave. The thread is then woven into a fabric with the result that the outer surface is entirely of cotton.

In fabrics made in this manner, all the advantageous properties of agave are present and, in addition thereto, the fabrics possess the good qualities of a cotton surface.

Another mannerof constructing fabrics including agave is to employ threads of asbestos instead of cotton in the same manner as above described. Asbestos gives the resulting fabric the same smooth surface as cotton and has the additional advantages that it is not affected by moisture, that it resists heat, and that, because of its capillary structure, moisture is readily taken up and as readily evaporated.

A modified form of agave-asbestos fabric may be produced by making an upper fabric of asbestos and a lower fabric of agave. These two fabric layers may be connected by weaving either the warp or the weft threads of the asbestos layer into the agave layer in such a manner that they will enter into and appear on the under surface of the lower agave layer. By so weavng the fabric, moisture absorbed by the upper asbestos layer is led through the agave layer to the under side of the fabric where it is readily evaporated by contact with the air While the core of the fabricthe agave layer-remains relatively dry. Also, by this construction a thinner fabric is obtained than that which results from Weaving agave enveloped by asbestos and yet the same advantages are present.

A fabric constructed in accordance with any of the methods above described will possess all the advantages heretofore set out. In addition, when the fabric is to be used as a belt on drying machines where the belt is subjected to the action of chemicals, especially acids, agave fibres ofier greater resistance to the action of such chemicals than do the cotton or woolen fibres heretofore used in the construction of belts of this type.

What We claim is:

1. A fabric for drier felts, laundry aprons and the like made up of textile elements including agave.

2. A fabric for drier felts, laundry aprons and the like made up of textile elements including agave and other textile fibers.

3. A fabric for drier felts, laundry aprons and the like made up of textile elements including agave and other textile fibers, the latter forming the upper surface of the fabric.

4. A fabric for drier felts, laundry aprons and the like made up of textile elements including agave and other textile fibers combined by weaving in such a manner that the last mentioned fibers from the upper surface of the fabric.

5. A fabric for drier felts, laundry aprons and the like made up of textile elements including agave and other textile fibers, the latter forming the upper surface of the fabric and penetrating through the fabric to the lower surface thereof.

In testimony whereof We affix our signatures.

EDUARD v. ASTEN. HAROLD NEWLIN HILL. 

